LAND DEGRADATION AND SOLUTIONS

Do Kieu Anh, Le Do Mai Anh, , Phan Thi Mai Anh, Hoang Tai An,
Nguyen Ngoc Minh Anh, Le Thi Tuyet Anh, Nguyen Tran Hiep, Kieu Thi Ngoc Anh,
Pham Van Anh, Le Vinh Khanh, Nguyen Thanh Binh

Vietnam National University

January 19, 2022

Preprints DOI: https://osf.io/36bs8

Land plays an indispensable role in the lives of people as well as animals and plants. Over time,
land is affected by human activities leading to degradation. The phenomenon of land degradation
is very common caused by humans through indiscriminate deforestation, lack of exploitation
strategy from the point of view of soil protection and ecological environment protection, shifting
cultivation, nomadism... Soil degradation manifests itself in erosion, leaching, chemical
degradation, physical and biological degradation. Not only Vietnam but also countries around the
world are facing great challenges with the problem of soil pollution because it threatens the living
environment of many kinds of organisms (Q.-H. Vuong, 2021).
According to research by scientists, the topsoil is at risk of partially disappearing in the
future. The United Nations also warned that about a third of the planet's land resources are being
degraded by erosion, pollution, acidification and nutrient depletion. The main cause of this
situation is the poor management of the land by humans. The biggest factor of this situation is
rooted in human culture (Q. H. Vuong, 2021; Q. H. et al. Vuong, 2018), which is the "exhaustion"
of people doing what they do. work of the land for agricultural production. Growing food crops
for biofuel production, climate change and simple farming practices are increasing the risk of
future food shortages. In addition, there are other direct causes of land degradation, including
urbanization, infrastructure development, energy production, mining, etc.(Bộ Tài nguyên và Môi
trường, 2019), In addition, there are many other causes of land degradation, both natural and
human: tsunamis, earthquakes, storms, floods, deforestation, deforestation and forest
degradation (Khuc et al., 2018), inefficient farming, abuse of chemical substances, etc. Soil
pollution seriously affects human health and life through inhalation, in addition, it also affects a
not a small part to the ecosystem, reducing biodiversity, causing serious consequences for the
earth and humanity.
According to statistics, the total natural land area of Vietnam is 33 million hectares, of
which 26.1 million hectares are for agriculture, forestry and aquaculture, 3.7 million hectares are
used for agricultural purposes. non-agricultural purposes and the remaining 3.3 million hectares
have not been put into use. But it is remarkable here that most of the unused areas have been
polluted, degraded, desertified or have lost their value due to unreasonable over-exploitation. In
the situation of increasing population and strong development of new urban and industrial zones,
a large area of non-agricultural and agricultural land bank has been seriously polluted (Báo Nỡ
Yêu, 2021).
 Vietnam has up to 9.34 million hectares of fallow land, however, of which about 7.85
million hectares are strongly affected by desertification, most of which is bare land, infertile
hills and at risk. severely degraded. ... Dry land accounts for 43% of the world's arable land
(Sfarm.vn, 2018). Forest resources have also been significantly reduced, if in 1943 our country
had a forest cover rate of 43%, then after many efforts to overcome the situation of deforestation
during the past 60 years, the percentage of forest cover now only 37.6% (December 2006). The
loss of forests increases the area of fallow land, which leads to a significant decline of ecosystems,
leading to watershed degradation.
The reason is that our country's territory has a high slope; rich flow volume, large
speed; upland crops by long-term extensive farming method, burning forests for swidden
cultivation, especially watershed forests without vegetation cover, soil erosion, organic matter
leaching without measures to foster and supplement organic matter. soil base (mekongfarm,
2018). Soil pollution due to the use of many types of agro-pharmaceuticals in large quantities to
protect the quality and quantity of crops, a lot of waste, domestic and industrial
wastewater; salinization; poisoning from chemical preparations... the land is gradually degraded
(Hùng Chaetomium, 2019). Pollution from industrial activities, mining, farming and poor waste
management. Contaminants include metals, cyanides, DDT and other pesticides; PCB...
Faced with the great harm caused by land degradation as a result of land degradation GEF
(Global Environment Facility) against land degradation focuses on sustainable land management
(SLM) because land degradation is mainly related to desertification and deforestation. The GEF
considers that unsustainable agricultural practices along with soil erosion, overgrazing,
deforestation, etc. are the main causes of land degradation, all contributing to the decline of
ecological services. The Global Environment Facility addresses land degradation by addressing
the main causes while finding sustainable solutions. The GEF also focuses on natural resource
management in the broader landscape context, enabling investments that focus on effective
management of competitive land uses, return of ecosystem services, opportunities to increase
investment in SLM through different sources such as: payments for ecosystem services (PES),
carbon finance, etc (BBT, 2018), not only need efforts of world organizations but also need the
awareness of everyone's cooperation to prevent land degradation: building irrigation systems
and proper watering techniques, but this solution is not where Any method can be applied
because in many places the techniques and machines are still outdated and have not been
applied effectively in protecting degraded land. Or like planting trees, protecting forests, but it
takes a few years for trees to grow big enough to hold the land and prevent erosion caused by
floods, but besides that, people still exploit trees for wood, leading to progress. The rate of tree
planting did not keep up with the cutting progress. People have come up with a series of solutions
to apply to life to improve the quality of land, but there are still many solutions that are not really
effective and thorough, leading to land degradation that is still happening day by day. abundant
in some places, especially those with dense population and poor soil management techniques.
Basic agricultural systems are a major driver of soil and environmental degradation and a
significant source of major bio-greenhouse gas emissions. Plowing, inappropriate agricultural
practices, combined with deforestation and overgrazing, are the main causes of anthropogenic
soil erosion. While much research has focused on agrarian agriculture , in a recent paper, it was
shown that protozoan systems cannot be ignored, which may be responsible for the majority of
global soil erosion by water (Borrelli et al., 2020).
 However, the underlying driver of all these changes is the growing per capita population due
to increasing population, leading to a gradual increase in the demand for protein, fiber and
bioenergy. This leads to greater demands and demands for land and further encroachment into
marginal land areas.
In addition, market deregulation, which has been a global trend since the 1980s, can lead to
the destruction of sustainable land management practices towards monoculture, and may
encourage a race downhill. bottom as far as environmental protection is concerned. The vast
geographical gap between the demand for consumer goods and the land needed to produce
them – in other words, is what causes land degradation and its impact on the environment (Abbas
El-Zein, 2018).
Using 3D information processing systems (Vuong, Q. H., 2022; Q. H. Vuong & Napier, 2014)
and semiconductor principles to find effective creative solutions is the key to environmental
problems in general and land degradation in particular. Firstly, soil conservation is necessary and
urgent to prevent loss of the top layer of soil from erosion, preventing the reduction of fertility
in the current alarming state of soil degradation. Secondly, efforts are needed to manage forests
and plan for reforestation as deforestation in Paraguay is believed to have decreased by 65%
within two years of the enactment of the 2004 No Deforestation Law. Curb industrial farming,
limit plowing, let the land rest (Phạm Văn Đồng, 1964). Thirdly, to diversify soil organisms,
implement active mineralization measures as well as increase the use of organic fertilizers for
arable land and soil protection, must change human activities such as: farms, cattle grazing,
indiscriminate mining,... (Phạm Văn Đồng, 1964). Fourthly, whether industrial waste or domestic
waste, effective waste treatment is one of the most effective ways to limit soil pollution, reduce
the use of non-biodegradable materials, only It is necessary to switch to reusable cloth bags,
thereby reducing plastic waste into the environment, indirectly protecting the land (Phạm Văn
Đồng, 1964). Finally, education is the key to reducing the problem of soil pollution, we need to
show people the bad effects of our actions on land degradation. It is necessary to urgently
develop more specific and practical regulations in: selection of arable land, reclamation,
cultivation, fertilization, construction of water-retaining structures and keeping soil color suitable
for each region. (Phạm Văn Đồng, 1964).

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